ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the relationship between the biometric identification process and testimony in the Civil Identification Service in Ndjamena. It is based on fieldwork conducted within the Identity Control and Verification Commission set up by the Ministry of the Interior and Public Security in 2011. The commission's members define a set of techniques and guides that enable them to determine whether individuals meet the requirements for Chadian nationality. Oral representations and identity verification remain central to the identification process. The chapter argues that the introduction of biometrics has not fundamentally changed the pre-existing social logic of identity verification.
